Rendering devices (e.g., printers, scanners, fax machines, photo copy machines, etc.) often include components that wear with usage and eventually require replacement. For example, laser printers typically include internal rollers for transporting print media, an electrophotographic drum for transferring toner to the print media, and a fuser for fusing toner to the print media. Such components wear with usage and may need to be replaced, sometimes more than once, during the life of the rendering device. An HFSI is an integral component that can be replaced at the end of life or at the time of premature failure of one or more components. HFSI components enable a variety of machine subsystems to be incorporated into a single unit while maximizing the useful life of each component.
A typical HFSI (the parent) can be configured from multiple components (the children), each component having an independent HFSI counter. A number of such counters may each be associated with a particular replaceable component so that the HFSI counters can be reset independently. Such counters can be utilized for scheduling replacement of the individual component when the counter associated with the component attains a predetermined threshold value, or when directed to in concert with service documentation. The “parent” component needs to be replaced completely when any of the “child” components reach a count indicative of the need for replacement.
The replacement of such components requires service professionals such as, for example, a CSE (Customer Service Engineer) to repair and replace the components that wear during periods of normal use. CSE visits are expensive and should be avoided if possible. For this reason, particularly high frequency service actions are packaged as Operator Replaceable Components (ORCs) or Customer Replacement Units (CRUs).
Occasionally it is desired to reduce service costs by converting a CSE replaceable component to an Operator Replaceable Component. Most prior art solutions involve the conversion of a component from a customer replaceable component to a CSE replaceable component by updating an installed software module in order to change the component from the CSE to the customer replaceable unit, which is an infrequent event. Such software modules require associated training materials in order for an individual to make the adjustment, which is expensive, and rarely done.
In order to reduce the costs associated with replacing a CSE replaceable unit to customer replaceable component, it is believed that a need exists for an improved method and system for managing field convertible customer replaceable components associated with a particular device such as, for example, a rendering device. A need also exists for providing a remote access for managing replaceable components.